This invention generally relates to a safety anchor system for protecting workers from falling off of elevated work platforms. More particularly, this invention relates to a anchor system that provides a greater range of movement for an individual while simultaneously providing protection from falling off an elevated platform or surface.
There are many instances where construction workers have to work on elevated surfaces during the construction of a building. Because the building is still under construction, walls are typically not in place and there is a potential for an individual to fall off of an elevated platform or surface.
A variety of devices have been developed or proposed to protect individuals from falling under such circumstances. Previous devices, however, have two major shortcomings. First, they typically are not adaptable to being used in a variety of situations or environments. Second, the available range of motion to a worker is often too limiting, which makes the device inconvenient and inefficient to use under most circumstances. The range of motion is restricted by the length of a tether, which must have a limited length in order to provide adequate protection.
One example device is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,928,790, which issued on May 29, 1990. One drawback associated with that device is that it requires a work surface having vertical side projections that are perpendicular to a work surface so that the anchorage pads have a surface to engage to lock the safety device in place. Such an arrangement has limited application because not all elevated work platforms have a sufficiently perpendicular orientation of the vertical surfaces to support the anchorage pads. For example, concrete slabs that are typically used in the construction industry often have a generally trapezoidal cross-section, which does not include truly vertical side walls. Therefore, the device of the U.S. Pat. No. 4,928,790 is not believed to be effective to make a connection with such concrete slabs.
Another example device is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,711,397, which issued on Jan. 27, 1998. The device of that patent is limited to being used with steel construction to protect steel workers. The device shown in that patent is not versatile enough to be used when the elevated platform is made from concrete slabs, for example.
In view of the shortcomings and drawbacks of currently available or proposed systems, it is desirable to provide an improved safety anchor device to protect workers from falling off of an elevated platform. This invention addresses the need for a safety anchor system that is adaptable to be used in a wider variety of circumstances. Additionally, the safety anchor system of this invention provides greatly increased mobility for an individual working on an elevated surface while simultaneously providing the level of protection required to avoid injury from a fall.